After dropping for most of the month, gas prices are now lower in much of the U.S. than they were a year ago, possibly part of a larger decline in that could lift consumer confidence ahead of the summer driving season.

Gasoline prices climbed Friday for the 24th straight day as service stations pass along the rising cost of oil. The national average for gasoline hit $3.741 per gallon, according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. That's an increase of 46.5 cents per gallon since the start of 2012. Gasoline has never been so high this time of year, and analysts say it could reach a record of $4.25 per gallon by late April.

It looks like consumers are finally starting to see lower prices at the pump, with auto club AAA reporting a modest decline in gas prices this week. The drop comes after crude oil prices have fallen 20% since July. What does this mean for the economy?

If there's one good thing that came out of Thursday's dizzying market slide, it's the fact that consumers could soon feel a little less pain at the pump. Oil futures also fell along with stocks on fears of lower demand. And gasoline prices should soon follow suit.

During most of June, Western Refining followed the rest of the market down, dipping as much as 16.5%. However, its shares have since perked up -- and they have much farther to rise. The refiner is in a prime position to take advantage of a wide spread between the price of crude oil and gasoline.

We've already shared some ideas from our readers on ways to economize, squeeze extra miles out of your tank, and find surprising discounts. In the final part of this series, we'll take a peek at some of the more unusual methods that you offer for reducing pain at the pump.

Once again, gas prices are hitting the stratosphere and, once again, many are dragging out the same old suggestions for saving money at the pump. Have you found any interesting or innovative methods to save money at the gas station?

Today's sluggish housing market has little margin for error: Make an ill-conceived or poorly researched home purchase now, and you'll almost certainly pay the price later. To avoid that, make sure you have the right answers to these three questions before you buy your next home.

Americans are earning and spending more, but a lot of the extra money is going down their gas tanks. Gas prices have drained more than half the extra cash Americans are getting this year from a cut in Social Security taxes.

Given the prospect of $4-plus gasoline this summer, what's an American to do? Beyond switching to a higher-MPG vehicle, you can consider buying some oil stocks with plenty of upside potential to help offset your pain at the pump. Here are five candidates.

Fears over Mideast turmoil have pushed oil and gas prices sky high, which risks tipping the U.S. economy back in to a recession. But the government isn't powerless when it comes to oil prices: Here are five things that Washington and the states can do that would quickly reduce our pain at the pump.

And that means it may be time for owners of gas-thirsty SUVs and cars to start considering the switch so many Americans are loath to make: to a far more fuel-efficient vehicle. Looking out over the next several years, it's hard to see oil -- and gasoline -- falling back to earlier lows.

Most forecasts expect February will show 3% growth or better over the same time last year when major merchants report monthly tallies on Thursday. One things seems clear: Higher-end households were more willing to spend than lower- and middle-income ones.

As national gasoline prices shoot higher each day, signs of motorists rationing gas purchases have begun springing up around the country. People are buying fewer gallons per fill up and paying more in cash than with credit. All signs that motorists are already cutting back.

Oil prices fell below $97 per barrel Monday -- from more than $100 a few days ago -- on reports that Libya's still exporting oil. But gasoline prices continued to rise, jumping 8 cents over the weekend.

As it did in the summer of 2008, when prices at the pump soared above $4 a gallon, big price jumps at the gas pump may give car buyers reason to pause and cause vehicle sales to stall. At least the carmakers now have more fuel-efficient fleets, except for Chrysler, which is still catching up.

Events in the Mideast have, once again, revealed the U.S. economy's vulnerability to an oil shock. Now more than ever, the nation must reduce its consumption of oil, especially from abroad, and become energy self-sufficient. And the way to do it is with our abundant domestic sources of natural gas.

Americans could see gasoline spiking 10% to 18% higher in coming weeks as a result of the unrest in the Middle East, but they're unlikely go above $4 a gallon -- unless the uprisings spread to Saudi Arabia. In that case, all bets are off.

Brent crude traded at $107.68 today as West Texas crude prices moved to $94.24. Oil prices don't immediately transfer to gasoline pump prices, but they surely have an impact as crude moves through refineries into finished products. AAA data showed gas prices hit an average of $3.171 last week across the U.S.